Bumblebee Queens Breathe Underwater: A Hidden Superpower Revealed

Bumblebee queens harbor a remarkable, previously unknown superpower: they can breathe underwater and survive for extended periods. This startling discovery was made accidentally by scientists when water leaked into vials containing hibernating queens, which were found to be alive.

Further research indicates that these insects do not hold their breath. Instead, they employ a strategy of significantly slowing down their metabolism to reduce oxygen requirements. Scientists observed that bumblebee species could extract oxygen from water, possibly through a protective air bubble, in a process similar to a physical gill. When oxygen is depleted, they switch to anaerobic metabolism.

This incredible survival strategy is thought to have evolved to prevent queens from drowning when hibernating underground and the ground becomes flooded due to heavy rain. The findings were published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences journal.